Mass Production of the Automobile

Who made the automobile accessible to the American middle class?

Henry Ford

What did Ford help shape?

The nations economy, transportation, culture, and way of life

Where was Ford born?

Dearborn Michigan

What year was Ford born?

1863

At what age did Ford move from his hometown?

28

Where did Ford move?

The rapidly industrializing Detroit

Why did Ford move to Detroit?

He grew restless with operating his small farm

What job did Ford work in Detroit?

Mechanical engineer for an electrical company

What year did Ford join the automobile industry?

1903

How old was Ford when he joined the automobile industry?

44

What company did Ford found?

The Ford Motor Company

How many years after he started the Ford Motor Company did Ford unveil his first car?

5 years

What was Fords first car?

The Model T

How was the Model T described?

Lightweight and utilitarian

What was the Model T’s nickname?

The Tin Lizzie

What engine was the Model T equipped with?

A four cylinder, forty horsepower internal combustion engine

What terrain was the Model T designed to handle?

Rugged, unpaved roads

What did the base Model T lack?

Frills, and essential components like a windshield

Model T’s equipped with a windshield didnt have what?

Heaters or defrosters

What did one driver report having to do in the winter to see out of his windshield?

Carry a bag of salt

Instead of an electric starter what did the Model T have?

A hand crank

What were hand cranks notorious for?

Causing all manner of orthopedic injuries

How did the Model T reflect Fords taste?

It was available in one color, black

Who did Ford work with to build his factory in Highland Park?

Albert Kahn

How did Ford revolutionize automobile production?

Through the introduction of the assembly line

What was the assembly line patterned on?

The mass production of sewing machines and mobile disassembly lines

Disassembly lines were developed where?

Chicago

Who developed the mobile disassembly lines?

Meatpackers to process millions of pounds of pork

What did Fords assembly line employ?

A network of conveyor belts, chains, and cranes to move a bare chassis through a series of stations

What did the network of conveyors, belts, chains and cranes culminate in?

A fully finished automobile ready to drive off the lot

How did workers preform tasks in the assembly lines?

By remaining stationary and completing a single task over and over for their entire shift

The low skill and repetitive work of Fords assembly lines did what to many auto workers?

Alienated them

How did auto workers feel about the low skill work of the assembly lines?

They couldn’t help feeling as if they were cogs in a great industrial machine

How did a British journalist describe the Highland Park plant?

A jungle of wheels, belts, and weird iron forms—of men, machinery and movement

What animals did a visiting British journalist compare the sounds of the Highland Park plant to?

Squirrels, monkeys, lions, pigs, elephants, and sinners

The description of the British journalist could be described as what?

Terrifying

Who was the only American to receive more press coverage than Ford?

President Calvin Coolidge

What principles did Ford apply to his factories?

Scientific management

Who popularized scientific management?

Frederick W. Taylor

What did Frederick W. Taylor study?

Studies of time and motion of workers

Frederick W. Taylors studies helped do what?

Streamline production processes in many industries

How many cars did Ford produce in 1910?

18,664 cars

How many cars did Ford produce in 1911?

34,538

After the introduction of the assembly line Fords annual production increased to what?

300,000

How much did the time taken to produce a car fall from?

12 hours to 93 minutes

Where did Ford build a second complex?

River Rogue

Fords second complex allowed him to achieve what in 1921?

More than 1 million cars produced

Ford accounted for how many of all cars produced in the U.S?

Half of all cars produced

What years did Ford double production?

Between 1923 and 1925

How many cars did Ford produce on October 31st 1925?

9,109

By 1930 how much of the nations manufactured goods did cars account for?

1/10th

What did automobile manufacturing spur demand for?

Steel, rubber, glass, and oil

Fords assembly line provided the technological basis for what?

A consumer goods revoution

What would the consumer goods revolution bring to Americans?

Radios, refrigerators, vacuums, and other appliances

What strategy did Ford master?

Vertical integration

What is vertical integration?

A corporation that seeks total control over every resource necessary to manufacture their final product

Where did Ford acquire iron mines and timberland?

Michigans Upper Pininsula

Where did Ford acquire coal mines?

Appalachia

How many square feet of glass did Ford require for his cars?

26 million square feet

By what year was Ford able to produce the 26 million sq feet of glass needed?

1926

How was Ford able to cut prices on his cars?

By capitalizing on the economies of scale afforded by mass production

How much was a Model T in 1909?

$825

5 years after 1909 how much did a Model T cost?

490

In 1925 how much did a Model T cost?

$290

In 1914 how many households owned a car?

1/13

By 1920 how many households owned a car?

1/3

By the end of the decade how many households owned a car?

4/5

What was the wage and hours for working the assembly line?

$5 daily wage for 8 hours of work

When did ford offer a $5 wage?

January 5th 1914

How much did most workers earn per day?

$2-3

How many men stood at the gates of the Ford plant to be among the new hires?

4,000

When did Ford increase the wage?

1919

What did Ford increase the wage to in 1919?

$6 a day